Tuesday, October 20, 2009

It’s called guerilla marketing: When you don’t have a big marketing budget, you use your time, energy and imagination to promote your products and services. So when I heard that Martha Stewart was going to be in L.A. to sign her latest book at Sur La Table, I immediately placed my order for the book (and accompanying complimentary ticket) and showed up in line yesterday armed with a custom Auratone necklace and thank-you note that I’d made especially for her. Both featured a great image of her beautiful cat, “Uncle Vanya,” that I’d downloaded from her website.

There was, of course, a method to my madness: The note card not only thanked her but had my contact information on the back.

Martha looked beautiful…radiant even. And she was extremely gracious…signs were prominent saying, “No posed photos,” but there she was posing sweetly at every request with one devotee after another, even reaching for a baby to hold on her lap for one mom’s very special photo op. I can’t believe I didn’t bring a camera!

As I got closer to the front of the line, my inner alarm went off when I noticed that the table she sat behind was pristine save for a glass of water…doubtful she’d appreciate cluttering it up with this and that, even a gift (er, shameless albeit beautiful piece of self-promotion). Once I stood before her, though, I decided to just go for it. After she had signed my book, I told her it was so nice to meet her, and that I had made a thank-you gift for her, placing the notecard and necklace in front of her. Her face lit up (I swear it did!) and she exclaimed, “Oh, look…it’s Uncle Vanya, he was one of my favorite cats!” and turned to show her assistants. (Thankfully she didn’t burst into tears at the memory of him…I didn’t know he was no longer with us!!)

Then she asked if I had also made the necklaces I was wearing (hanging strategically at her seated eye level), and of course I had, and then I blurted out that I would love to be on her show to demonstrate the Auratone process, and the friendly woman who had stood in line behind me said she’d tune in, and then we were all smiling and talking at once. Finally Martha gave me a very sincere thank-you, nodded (I like to think meaningfully, as in, “This is something I definitely want to look into!”) at her assistant and asked her to keep everything together in the envelope. Then her assistant asked me if that was my business card also in the envelope, which indeed it was, and the next thing I knew Martha was telling the people behind me about what I had made as I floated out of there on a cloud of optimism.

All this took place in less than a minute, but it was everything I had hoped for. Who knows where it will lead…I followed my instincts and am glad I did what I did, and now it’s in the hands of the gods!

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If you’ve always wondered what to do with your favorite photos, you’ve come to the right place. I love combining photos and sometimes words with traditional and digital art supplies and techniques to create fine art and crafts...I call it “photo fusion.” I also love sharing what I’ve learned, and the people, places and things I've discovered and been inspired by along the way. So drop by often to see what’s new, post a comment if you have any questions or suggestions, and please be sure to visit my website and my shop, which is filled with creative kits and other products I know you'll love.